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A changing, and challenging, worldDear , I wanted to let you know about a few administrative matters, as well as our activities over the last month or so. Premises It’s now definite that we will need to move from here at Unit 2B, 50 Logan Road, Woolloongabba. We’ve been very fortunate to have the use of it for the last 5 years, and we owe a great debt to the generosity of Lyn Brazil. We’re actively looking for new premises, and the budget is very skinny, so if you have any ideas, or own somewhere that we can use, please let me know as soon as possible. Call me on 0411 104 801. This will force us to change our style of functions as we will no longer have access to a free auditorium where we can self-cater – unless you know of somewhere. If you do, please let me know. Membership Our membership system is administered by the Red Union Support Hub. I know some of you received confusing messages from our eCommerce system because of this. If you are contacted by someone from the Red Union about your membership don’t panic, they are doing it on our behalf. The union is the brainchild of one of our directors, Graeme Haycroft, and is currently just shy of 19,000 members – that is larger than either the state LNP or Labor Party. Graeme is doing what he has done all his life and is breaking the current industrial relations paradigm. Red Union represents mostly nurses, doctors and teachers. It is apolitical and does not donate members' money to any political parties, meaning it is cheaper for the same service, and doesn’t divert members money to causes the members don’t support. We’re very grateful to Graeme and his crew for their support. Past Functions We ran what might now be our last function in this building with the launch of Christopher Reynold’s What a Capital Idea. We also ran an invitation-only Chatham House Rules lunch on nuclear energy at the end of January with Professor Jacopo Buongiorno from MIT. This is the sort of event where think tanks can exert a whole lot of indirect influence just by bringing people together, but which you will rarely hear about as it is below the surface. Our thanks to Stephen Wilson who put us in touch with the professor, and Ash Hill of GRT Lawyers and Colin Mackenzie of Shaws who sponsored the lunch. Future Functions I’m working on a few, but these are the ones we definitely have lined up. Details will be up on our website soon and invitations will be in the email. Until then, please mark them in your diary. May 22: Book launch Ron Manners, The Impatient Libertarian. 6:00 pm. June 18: Australia's new National Defence Strategy - is it fit for purpose? Major General (Rtd) Adam Findlay. Lunch. August 1: Emancipation Day Breakfast Alliance for Responsible Citizenship We also organised an informal function for Baroness Philipa Stroud, the Executive Director of the ARC, a week ago when she visited Brisbane briefly. It was on short notice, but a number of our directors got to meet her, as well as people from the broader Queensland community. The ARC is setting up an Australian network, and the AIP is looking at playing a role in the ARC - it has the potential to magnify our efforts. When I have more information about the ARC Australian network I will let you know. Samuel Griffith Society Conference Our friends at the Samuel Griffith Society are holding their national conference at the Sheraton Grand Mirage Resort from Friday 24th May through to Sunday 26th May. As a member of the AIP you are eligible for the SGS discount rate on any of the functions. Publications Media releases
Media articles
Conclusion Thanks for your support. With this being a state election year, we will be working extra hard to ensure good policy is part of the debate in Queensland. As you can see from our activities we’ve staked out a couple of areas that are crucial – housing, and energy. We’re also doing work on health. Further work needs to be done on education and crime, as well as how we get the finances of this once-great state back together again. Regards, GRAHAM YOUNG 
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